- The last PT Cruiser will roll off the assembly line this Friday at Chrysler's Toluca facility.
- 1.3 million PT Cruisers sold in 10 years.
- The Toluca plant will now build the Fiat 500.
TOLUCA, Mexico — Either you loved the Chrysler PT Cruiser's "classic retro" looks or hated them, but there is no disputing that it was an important car. The five-passenger compact is at the end of its life span now, after 1.3 million were sold in 10 years. The last one rolls off the assembly line on Friday here.
The PT Cruiser opened the door for other retro-styled vehicles such as the Chevrolet HHR and the Mini. In 2005 the company launched a convertible version, and through the years more than a dozen special editions came and went.
The Cruiser started production at the Toluca facility in December 1999. Nowadays, few vehicles last in production that long. It also was manufactured in Graz, Austria, for a time, but Toluca built the majority of the cars. The PT Cruiser should have been in production for about half the time, but its strong sales when it first was launched, and then a lack of new models, made it the best or only option for Chrysler. Now the Toluca plant is freeing up space to launch the Fiat 500 — another car that takes retro styling to a new level — in the first quarter of 2011.
Inside Line says: It won't be long before the PT Cruiser and its fans find themselves indulging their nostalgia in the Woodward Dream Cruise and other classic-car events. — Loriana Marietta, Correspondent
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garsurv says:
02:39 PM, 09/12/2010
I have owned many cars, suvs, and trucks. None were as enjoyable to drive and own as my 2003 PT GT. Retro styling and good performance. Seven years now and NO problems at all. An HHR and a Toyota Avalon have come and gone since then. I plan on buying a new vehicle soon, but I plan on keeping my PT as a second car for a long time.
sugarlandtx says:
12:45 PM, 07/08/2010
The losers are the people slamming Chrysler for selling these cars for 10 years. If you could market a product with little or no refinements for 10 years and make money in the process, why not. A sale is a sale. The development and production costs were paid for in the first 2 or 3 years, all sales that came after that were icing on the cake. VW made the Beatle for years. No one called VW stupid for doing so.
aston_dbs says:
09:15 AM, 07/08/2010
I had no choice but to rent one (the rental car company only has one car left)
It drove so horrible that I want to drive this thing off a cliff!!
I can't believe Chrysler got away of NOT updating this POS for 10 freak1ng years...
10 Years!! Unbelievable!!
davicho says:
07:52 AM, 07/08/2010
@ juan_mx
You are probably the type of people that kept this POS going this long. PT Losers are fluggy (always have been) and neither the old or the new 2.4L version that they get is an engine to praise about...noisy, harsch, not fuel efficient and gutless.
@ kosmo69
The rental companies will stock up on the next POS look a like...HHRs
kosmo69 says:
06:41 AM, 07/08/2010
oh no! what are are the rental companies going to do now?!
juan_mx says:
06:23 AM, 07/08/2010
@xoquixxoqafxo
The 2.4L engine is basically the same engine used by Mitsubishi and Hyundai (it is a Chrysler/Mitsubishi/Hyundai "World Engine"), and I have heard few complaints about Mistubishi cars using this engine (Lancer, Galant, Eclipse, Outlander). I believe it is a good engine, much better that the old 2.4L used in the PT Cruiser (that is really thirsty).
The platform used in the Caliber is the same used by Mitsubishi, not state of the art, but much better than the old Neon platform used in the PT Cruiser.
I've never driven a Caliber with a CVT, but many people complain about it, may be that is the reason of the bad driving experience. I remember the 3-speed auto that came with the Neon, that was really bad, but the 5-speed manual was pretty good (for its time) with the 150hp 2.0L engine.
lostboyz says:
03:41 AM, 07/08/2010
say what you want about how it should've been killed long ago, but it only kept going because people kept buying them. 1.3 million in 10 years is pretty good for a car like that.
leokbelo says:
06:19 PM, 07/07/2010
Ooops, I meant " Losers , the people paying $10k over MSRP for this POS..."
leokbelo says:
06:18 PM, 07/07/2010
Losers...
xoquixxoqafxo says:
05:32 PM, 07/07/2010
@ juan_mx
you must be kidding me, the dodge caliber is a dissappointment, the 2.4L engine is gutless, unrefined, sucks fuel, and is mated to a poor CVT that makes the whole driving experience even worse. It needs to be killed along with the crappy PT cruiser. Chrysler just needs help, there is absolutely nothing in their product line that is class leading.